[X] Escort them to Patchouli yourself, right away.
- [X] Or, if they would prefer, ask Sakuya to take them.
"Alright. Just give me a moment to let my sister know, and I'll take you downstairs." Tohsaka starts to reply, then checks herself and frowns at you suspiciously. "Unless you'd prefer Sakuya take you?"
"Er, no, you're fine - and she's busy in the other room right now, isn't she?" You stifle a snap of irritation at the implication that you might not have anything better to do. "But … really? You're just letting us go, just like that?" You look at her, your expressionless face masking not only your own surge of aggravation, but also Headless's furious outburst. Even Giltless snarls angrily.
"Yes, Tohsaka, just like that. Because Ilya is a guest - not a prisoner, not a hostage, not a refugee trying to return to an occupied land. If she wants to return to her home, there is absolutely no reason to keep her any longer than necessary." She looks quite taken aback, then nods slowly.
"Ah, yeah … I just thought …." Fortunately, she simply trails off and shakes her head, instead of making you even angrier, and you ever so subtly bite clean through the inside of your lower lip. "Ah, I'll let Illya know." You nod and she turns back to her friends. Lulu looks irritated, and Ilya isn't hiding her anger well, either. Satsuki looks shocked, then she lowers her head and you see her clenched fists shaking. You wonder if Sella and Leysritt are burying their emotions like you, or if they're really as unperturbed as they look.
"Excuse me a moment, Ilya, Lulu. I'll find you when I'm done, okay?" Ilya nods and gently pulls Lulu away; they both give you sympathetic glances. "Satsuki, stay with them, please." She tries to match her glare against you, but drops her head, defeated, and bows.
"Yes, Flandre-sama." Her voice is tense, and for a moment you expect her to refuse and stay with you, or try to do something to Tohsaka - but she swallows and turns away. You sigh and walk up to your sister. Aya, still upset, pauses and looks at you, and Remilia turns to face you as well.
"Illya's group is going back to their home," you say, and for a moment your sister's expression is unreadable. Then she closes her eyes, nods, and smiles at you, eyes soft and gentle.
"I'll let Patchouli know. Sakuya has Bazett's clothes - and she can keep the dress, if she wants." One wing reaches out and around to caress you. "Take your time coming back up if you need to, Flandre." You nod, and the wing falls away from you. You turn and walk up to Illya. She smiles weakly at you, ignorant of Miyu's fiercely protective look, and you fix a polite smile on your own face.
"Ready to head home?" She nods nervously.
"Um, yes, please." You bow, keeping the smile, and half-turn, gesturing for them to follow you as you head into the ballroom. You glance back - Illya looks worried, the older mages look confused … and Miyu none-too-subtly has her Device in her hand. Sakuya walks toward you, a dark canvas bag in hand, and you nod to her.
"Miss McRemitz," she says, ignoring Bazett's frown and holding the bag out to her. The woman stares at it for a moment, then her eyes widen and she steps up to take it, smiling congenially.
"Oh, thank you. Ah, this dress -"
"You can keep it," you say, nodding for Sakuya to return to her work. Bazett stares at you, surprised, and you shrug. "You don't have to, of course, but I'm not sure we have any use for it." She shakes herself.
"Ah, thank you …." Her voice is quiet, subdued, and she touches the dress thoughtfully. You nod and turn away, heading for a door leading to the hallway. The dance floor is much less crowded already, and a lot of youkai are sitting at tables, drinking. Luvia, Tohsaka, and Bazett adjust their positions so they're stacked on the room-side, with the butler and Miyu on the wall-side. Illya doesn't seem to realize what they're doing, although she does relax a little when they block her view of the room.
"… Um, thank you for inviting us. I - I did enjoy myself. And … I'm sorry …." Illya speaks up when the door to the library is in sight, and you turn to face her, then stop as she apologizes.
"Sorry?" Tohsaka seems just as perplexed as you are, and Illya hunches her shoulders.
"Um, we're leaving early, aren't we? And … and I'm taking you away from your friends. They seemed upset about that, so … um …." You blink, then smile and half-bow.
"It's alright. Like I told Tohsaka - you're a guest. You're my guest. And I take my responsibilities seriously." Illya nods and looks down sheepishly. You wait for a moment, then turn and start walking. "Come, we don't want to keep your parents waiting." Again, you manage to keep the loathing from infecting your voice, and you hear Illya make a spirited sound and hurry to catch up to you. Silence resumes its dominance.
When you reach the top of the stairs, you see a gleaming new decoration in the library, on the floor before reaching the shelves proper. All you can tell is that it's humanoid, but the wings give you a pretty good guess as to what it is. When you reach the bottom of the stairs, Illya gasps in wonder at the golden statue and rushes past you, and you shake your head gently. "Hmm … it doesn't fit its current surroundings very well," Luvia says. Bazett, still wearing the dress, frowns darkly at the statue before turning her gaze on you. You nod and walk up to the statue, admiring your sister's work. Well, it could be Patchouli's, but … it's probably your sister's work.
"Yeah, we'll probably move it somewhere else after the party." You examine it closely, but of course it's identical to Hatate, down to individual strands of hair and minute protrusions in her ear canals. Clothes, jewelry, it's all there - except for one damaged piece. In her outstretched left hand is half of a cell phone, broken at the hinge … and upon closer inspection, she does seem to have an expression that indicates she understands a small portion of how badly she messed up.
"Ah, Lady Flandre! What do you think?" You smile at Koakuma as she bounds into the area, flicking your eyes momentarily to settle on the satori's bird-youkai sitting on the shelves … and the other satori. You rap the statue's chest, satisfying yourself with its solidity, and nod.
"Can't say I'm fond of the subject, of course, and as Luvia said, this isn't a good place for it. Quality is excellent, of course, as always." Koakuma grins and polishes the statue's tongue, reaching a cloth through the statue's slightly open mouth.
"I was thinking we could put it on the roof - like a weather vane!" You tap your lips as you step back, considering the statue, then shake your head.
"And give it a view of Gensokyo? That's silly. We should put it in one of the galleries - its own private room, of course, with nothing to distract anyone who comes in to see it." Of course, you'd rather just dump it in a hole and dig it up in a month or two … but you shouldn't say that in front of Illya. She seems to think it's an ordinary statue, and you don't want to upset her this close to the end. "Or … yes, I suppose we could put it in the clock tower, if letting visitors see it is important. Right next to the bells, so it stands out." Koakuma giggles. "Anyway, we have to get going now. Patchouli knows we're coming?" She nods.
"Miss Patchouli is waiting for you. Farewell, Illyasviel, Miyu, Ruby, Sapphire, Bazett, Rin, Luviagelita, Auguste." You raise your eyebrow at the mention of the butler's name, but it's not terribly important, and no one else seems bothered by it. Koakuma bows, and Illya waves back at her before following you through the library to the portal area. Patchouli is indeed waiting for you - and, amazingly, still in her black dress - and she nods politely as you enter the area. She glances at you, then sighs.
"Normally I wouldn't do this, but Remilia insisted," she says, and waves her hand. A tiny velvet case floats over to Bazett, a thick folder to Miyu, a thinner one to Illya, and a box each to Tohsaka and Luvia. "Once you get a look at them, I'm sure you'll understand what they are. But, now that that's over with -" she gestures again and a portal opens up, showing Illya's family and servants sitting at a table. Patchouli blinks, then waves a third time - and Shirou falls face-first into his food, startling the rest of the household and eliciting several gasps of concern from this side of the portal as Patchouli chuckles. "Remi was right, that is fun! Anyway, through the portal you go." Illya scampers through without a backward glance, startling her family as they rush to Shirou's side. You imagine Archer in the same position and grin, then Miyu follows Illya, then Tohsaka. Luvia, Auguste, and Bazett all retain enough presence of mind to bow politely before Luvia, too, rushes through the portal to see if she can help in any way. Bazett stares at you for a long moment, then turns and walks through the portal. Patchouli closes it and sighs, shaking her head. Then she looks at you with an expression that - if you didn't know her better - almost looks like concern. "Would you like me to teleport you upstairs? Or do you want something to help work out your frustration?" You stare at her for a moment, then close your eyes and take a breath.
What do you do?
[ ] Let her teleport you upstairs.
- [ ] Find your friends and just sit down with them.
- [ ] Wander through the party for a bit.
- [ ] Go look for:
- - [ ] The twins.
- - [ ] The tengu Aya and Hatate were with.
- - [ ] The bald man.
- - [ ] Other?
[ ] Ask for something to vent on.
- [ ] Then go upstairs and see your friends.
- [ ] Ask for a second thing to vent on.
- - [ ] Then go upstairs to see your friends.
[ ] Head upstairs on your own.
- [ ] Find your friends and just sit down with them.
- [ ] Wander through the party for a bit.
- [ ] Go look for:
- - [ ] The twins.
- - [ ] The tengu Aya and Hatate were with.
- - [ ] The bald man.
- - [ ] Other?
[ ] Other?
DM Note: Wandering through the party cannot be done with Ilya and Lulu. Looking for someone specific can be, but specify that in the vote.
